Resisting Inerta
by MonkeyPajamas
Summary: An object at rest will stay at rest until a force acts upon it. Walter realizes that something needs to change.
Author's Note: I don't own _Scorpion_ or these characters. I just play with them when I get bored. Thanks for letting me borrow them for my own amusement.

* * *

Walter didn't know why he was there. When he'd left the garage, he was just going to go for a drive, maybe pick up some dinner. But, like so many times in the past, he instinctively drove straight to Paige's condo.

He'd sat in the car for what felt like an eternity, staring up into her window. Ralph was sitting on the couch, watching tv. Paige was busy around the kitchen; cleaning up after dinner, he assumed. In moments like this (and so many others), Paige amazed him. Even after a day like today, she still was able to come home and function – take care of Ralph and keep a household running smoothly. Walter certainly admired her, but had come to realize that, more than admiration, he wanted to be a part of it.

He'd thought about it, more than he cared to admit, over the past few months. He wanted to be up there, helping her with dishes and telling Ralph it was time for bed. He was tired of pretending his whole world wasn't up there, while he was outside looking in.

He knew why they had made the decision that they did. Romantic entanglements were difficult enough, even without the constant attention and pressure that their jobs demanded. They could not risk having their judgement clouded in those moments.

But that's exactly what happened today. They were in the middle of the case; Walter only needed a minute more to finish inserting the code when a shot rang out. Walter froze, fearful for Paige's safety. She was in the other warehouse, across the complex; had the staff uncovered the team's true purpose in being there? Toby held him down, trying to force him to keep working. But it wasn't until he heard Paige's voice over the comms that he was able to finish the coding, so they could leave in relative safety.

Whatever they feel for each other may get in the way of completing assignments. But ignoring it wasn't helping either.

Walter knew he had to be the one to initiate the change. He had been the one to dismiss their feelings as nothing more than a reaction to the stress of the job. He had been the one to insist upon the no fraternization policy among the team. Paige wouldn't their relationship or Scorpion. Walter needed to be the one.

He got out of his car, and started walking towards Paige's door. A random stranger passing by caused Walter to hesitate, suddenly becoming very interested in the plants growing at the base of the stairs. He'd been to Paige's place before, but tonight, he suddenly felt so exposed. Going to her house felt intimate. He remained there, at the bottom of the staircase, fidgeting with his keys, trying to figure out exactly what he hoped to accomplish tonight. He wasn't ready to give up, to get back in the car and drive home. But he couldn't bring himself to walk up those stairs, close the final gap, and to go _there_.

That's where he was when her voice rang out.

"Walter?"

She was on her way back from the dumpster when she noticed him. Paige stared at the figure, his movements so familiar, yet seemed so out of place, standing there in her parking lot. She almost doubted it was him – what would he be doing here this late at night? Sure their case today had been intense (when wasn't it these days), but they'd returned safe, like always, and settled down at the garage for a quiet afternoon before departing for the day; when she left it was with the typical "see you tomorrow" that always ended their work days. He hadn't mentioned wanting to visit with Ralph, but even so, he never hesitated to just come up and knock.

"Oh! Um... Hello, Paige." Walter stumbled over the simple greeting, feeling trapped in his previous decision. His mind raced, trying to find a logical explanation for his clearly illogical behavior. He walked closer, trying to make it seem more natural; that he hadn't just been stalking her parking lot for the better part of 20 minutes. "I was out, and just… wanted to make sure you were okay?" He inwardly cringed at his words, his inability to express himself.

Paige stepped closer, reaching out, gently rubbing his arm. "We're fine, Walter," she said calmly. She wanted to be able to catch his gaze, to let him see that she was really there and safe. Paige knew something was bothering him, but she couldn't figure what it could be. "Do you want to come up? Ralph's still awake, I'm sure he'd love to see you."

"Are you sure? I wouldn't want to interrupt…"

Paige let out a small chuckle. "After cleaning and homework, an interruption is exactly what we need."

Walter smiled, and unconsciously reached out for her hand as she led the way back up to her place. A few paces from their door, Walter stopped suddenly, pulling Paige to a stop as well.

"Walter?" she questioned.

"I… I need to say something." As much as Walter wanted to go inside, to continue on like this was normal, his brain wouldn't allow it. If he went in, it would become just like the other nights – he would go in, play with Ralph some, maybe a bedtime story or math game, and then a quiet goodbye to Paige before he left for the night. He enjoyed those nights immensely, but tonight he wanted more.

Paige searched his face, trying to figure out where this was going. Clearly something had been bothering him outside, but he had seemed to relax after their short talk. She had thought that maybe he had just wanted to confirm that she and Ralph were okay after the case today, but clearly that was not all that was on his mind. "What is it Walter?" she asked softly, gently rubbing her thumb against his still intertwined hand.

"In the fall, we uh…we agreed that our mutual attraction," Walter said, stumbling over his words, "was not in the um, the best interest of the team."

"Destabilizing," Paige said, her voice barely above a whisper as she remembered the conversation in the weather balloon.

"Right!" Walter agreed. "I mean," he tried to clarify as he saw Paige's hurt expression. "It was. Well, it still is, actually. But... I still find myself thinking about you, constantly. Today could have turned out very differently and …" Walter paused, trying to find the words he needed to say.

Paige reached up, gently caressing his cheek, but didn't say anything. She knew he needed to do this on his own terms. All she could do was let him know she wasn't going anywhere.

"I've wasted so much energy thinking about why it wouldn't work. And I've come to realize, it wasn't worth the fight. If something were to happen... You and Ralph are the most important people to me…" Walter continued, words failing him as he tried to express himself.

"I know," Paige quietly agreed. "But love is worth the risk."

Neither could tell who initiated the kiss. But suddenly, their lips met, and it was so much more than their kiss from months ago. While that had been a frantic, hungry kiss, this was slower, deeper. Walter lost himself in the taste of her vanilla lip gloss, wrapping his hands around her waist, pulling her closer. Paige inhaled his natural scent, surprised by his chapped lips and gentle hands. Neither wanted to break contact, even to breathe, and their kisses became more passionate and intense.

"Mom?" The door opened, and suddenly Ralph was there, staring at them. "Walter?" He paused, not sure what was going on.

Their kiss interrupted, but neither was willing to move. Paige's hand rested on Walter's chest; his hand on her back, holding her close. "Yeah, Ralph?" Paige asked, still catching her breath from the intensity of the kiss.

"Can I have a soda?"

"Not right now, almost bedtime. We'll, uh; we'll be in a minute." Paige bit her lip to keep from laughing, somewhat embarrassed about being caught making out in the hallway, by her son no less.

Ralph shrugged and went back inside. Paige and Walter both let out a nervous laugh; neither was sure what to say next.

"So… um," Paige started. "You want to come in, and we could… talk?" she ended hopefully.

Walter leaned forward, giving her a soft kiss, resting his forehead against hers. "I'll see you at the garage tomorrow. I just … needed to do that." He gave a slight chuckle, closing his eyes, memories of her soft, vanilla lips against his flooding his mind. There would be plenty of time for that later.

Paige leaned in, gave him one last, tender kiss. She wanted more, needed more, but understood why Walter was hesitating. There would be plenty of time for talking, kissing, and everything else in the coming days.

They parted slowly, their clasped hands the last to separate. "Tomorrow," he promised.

"Tomorrow," she repeated, with a hopeful smile.

Neither Paige nor Walter was sure how to broach the subject the next morning. Both smiled and said a quiet "hello" to the other, but neither dared mentioned the confession or kiss. They quickly fell into a pattern of acting like love stuck teenagers – stolen glances and quiet smiles throughout the day. Everyone could tell something had happened, but even Toby was hesitant to bring it up.

Ralph arrived at the garage after school, and quickly did his homework, as required by his mom, and then joined the geniuses in whatever projects they were working on.

"Walter? Will you be coming over again tonight?"

Everyone paused, glancing between Walter and Paige. While it was not unusual for Walt to be spending time with the boy – they all had gone over in the past few years – for Ralph to mention it like this was rare.

"Um," Walter glanced at Paige, trying to figure out his response.

"After you kissed last night, mom had implied that you _both_ would be in. I had just gotten a new issue of "Scientific America" and was hoping to read the article on organic nanowires with you. But when mom came back, she was alone."

"I knew it! I knew it!" Toby shouted, Happy elbowing him to shut him up.

"Um, sure, buddy, I'd love to read that with you. I mean, if it's okay with your mom?" Walter paused, looking again at Paige to make sure he wasn't overstepping any bounds.

Paige smiled. "Can't wait," was all she said.

* * *

So this actually started out as a different story in a different fandom, but then Ralph just kept popping up, so that necessitated a few changes! Ha!

I know I left it kind of open ended, but that's more what I felt like will really happen. Well, obviously, since I wrote it that way, but either way, I feel like it will be a more subtle transition into a relationship – no huge discussion or moment really. Just enough to signify it happening. And hopefully continuing enough to keep us shippers from revolting.

This story was a beast to write, as much as I loved the idea, translating it to the page was harder than anticipated. So, as always, favs and reviews are appreciated! Thanks for reading!


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